Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z fail Pew news quiz, 'Who's, like, Gorsuch?'

Supreme Court Justice nominee Neil Gorsuch, seen through glass, makes an animated gesture while speaking with staff members during his confirmation period. He's not a household word yet. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Their names -- Neil Gorsuch, Rex Tillerson, Robert Mueller, the Freedom Caucus -- have dominated the headlines since President Trump became president, but that doesn't mean everybody's paying attention.

The latest Pew Research Center news survey proved that for the nation's three biggest populations, Generation X, Millennials and Generation Z. Of 10 questions on current news, majorities of the three groups got six wrong.

Less than half of each could identify the new Supreme Court justice, the secretary of State, Trump's Russia inquisitor or the influential conservative caucus.

But they were up on Zika, know that Paul Ryan is the House speaker and are clear that the United Kingdom sparked Brexit.

Said Pew:

The new survey, conducted June 22-25 among 1,002 adults, finds substantial age differences in knowledge about several Washington figures.

For instance, a majority of those 50 and older (56%) know that Tillerson is secretary of state, compared with 32% of those younger than 50.

Older adults also are more likely to know that Gorsuch is a Supreme Court justice, and that Mueller is leading the investigation into Russia's involvement in the presidential campaign. However, majorities across age categories correctly identify Ryan as House speaker.

Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner's "Washington Secrets" columnist, can be contacted at pbedard@washingtonexaminer.com